Here at Koleilat & Miller, our two biggest practice areas are D.U.I. and Family Law. Typically these are two very different areas of practice yet can overlap in certain situations. If you are battling for child custody a D.U.I. on your record can have various levels of consequences. There are variables that will decide if a D.U.I. can cause you to lose the case or have barely any effect at all. It is important to have both an experienced and aggressive Ormond Beach D.U.I. attorney along with a determined family law attorney to handle either form of case.

The first part of the case that will decide if a D.U.I. matters are what form of custody you are trying to obtain. There are two main forms of custody that we will look at, and show how a D.U.I. will affect the case.

Legal Custody: Legal custody means that you have a voice in important decisions about the child. When you have legal custody, you have to be consulted on topics such as education, extracurricular activities, and other major choices in the child’s life. If you have a D.U.I. on record, it will have little to no effect on the decision for legal custody. This is because you do not have physical custody (see below) where the child will be in your care.

Physical Custody: Physical custody means that you are actively caring for the child. The child lives with you in some capacity of time, rather it is for more or less time than the other spouse. This is where a D.U.I. will have more major effects on the case. The D.U.I. can be used to show you have an issue with alcoholism or are generally not a responsible parent, regardless if it is true or not. Depending on various factors in the D.U.I. it might still not have any effect on the case. Some of the main factors that can affect your case are:

Date of Incident: If it has been years since your last D.U.I. it can be easily argued it was a one-time incident that you have since recovered from. Just in case it is brought up, it can be useful to have a character reference from a trusted source. If you went to any form of recovery, get a letter from your sponsor stating you have not had any issues since. If you go to church, a letter from a pastor can help you as well.

The frequency of Incidents: If you only have one single D.U.I. on your record, it will harm you less than if you have multiple. A single can be considered a mistake, multiple will be seen as a sign of alcoholism or lack of responsibility. If you have one single D.U.I on record, it might still be useful to have a character reference as mentioned above. If you have multiple infractions, you and your attorney will have a harder time working around it.

Details of the Incident: On its own, a D.U.I. is going to harm your case. If there was a child in the vehicle with you, however, it gets even worst. More so if there was any form of injury or property damage caused by the incident. Anything besides just a normal D.U.I. can cause more complications in the courtroom.

These reasons are why it is important to get an experienced Ormond Beach D.U.I. attorney to help prove your innocence in the courtroom. If you simply accept the ruling it could have long-lasting consequences on future cases and even outside of the courtroom. Attorney Kip Miller knows the effects that one can have and fights diligently. To get Attorney Kip Miller in your corner, call (386) 253-4720 today and schedule a consultation.